Sunday, October 21, 2018

A new episode of Five Minutes Five Issues posted on Saturday. You can listen to it, and read a transcript, below. You can also find previous episodes of the show at Stitcher, iTunes, YouTube, and SoundCloud.

Listen to the new episode here:

Read a transcript of the new episode, including links to further information regarding the topics discussed, here:

The Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity welcomes you to Five Minutes Five Issues.

Starting in five four three two one.

Hello, I am Adam Dick, a Ron Paul Institute senior fellow.

Let’s start.

Issue one.

In last week’s episode of Five Minutes Five Issues, I talked about the minimum age to purchase recreational marijuana being lower under countrywide legalization in Canada than it is in any American state that has legalized.

Jacob Sullum, in a Wednesday Reason article, provides three more reasons he thinks Canada legalization is better than American legalization. First, countrywide legalization has benefits including marijuana merchants not having to “operate under a legal cloud, committing federal felonies every day.” Second, marijuana taxes in Canada are lower than in American legalization states such as California and Washington. Third, Marijuana delivery is legal in Canada while it is prohibited in the majority of American legalization states.

Issue two.

Who should President Donald Trump appoint to replace outgoing United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley?

If that happens, maybe US House of Representatives Member Thomas Massie (R-KY), a fellow Kentucky Republican who often is allied with Paul in the Congress, could gain Paul’s vacated Senate seat.

But, Massie has another idea, In a Twitter post directed to the president, Massie writes “we the undersigned Members of Congress respectfully request that you consider replacing Ambassador Nikki Haley with … Nobody.”

Following that message, Massie, who is a member of the Ron Paul Institute Advisory Board, includes a link to a web page listing cosponsors of the American Sovereignty Restoration Act (HR 193) that would terminate US membership in the UN. The bill is the current version of legislation Sen. Paul’s father Ron Paul (R-TX) sponsored before retiring from the House.

Issue three.

The effort to roll back the United States government’s war on marijuana may soon gain significant support from an influential ally. That is the suggestion of marijuana policy writer Tom Angell in a Monday Forbes article. Angell writes that the American Bankers Association (ABA), the largest group representing American banks, “is asking its members to share stories demonstrating problems caused by the growing gap between marijuana’s ongoing federally prohibited status and its legalization in an increasing number of states.” The ABA says in an email announcing the survey that responses will be used for communicating with regulators and legislators. Among stories sought are those regarding situations where “banks face significant risks … including criminal and civil penalties as well as bank regulatory action,” if banks serve the marijuana industry and where banks turn away potential customers that “may generate a portion of their income from marijuana-related businesses.”

Issue four.

If you assume the Libertarian Party of the United States supports ending the Federal Reserve, you may assume too much.

Libertarians have differing thoughts on whether we should have a Fed, but it is NOT wise for the Fed to become a political football. #Trump/Congress should not control it. They can question it & have opinions. But the Fed, if it exists, should be independent from their control.

That day, I noted at Twitter that the party’s post provides a “window onto what the national US Libertarian Party has become.”

Laslo provides quotes from Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) indicating she would not push for rolling back marijuana prohibition beyond what President Trump indicates he will support, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) saying he has not even discussed with Pelosi the party’s plans for marijuana policy, and Assistant Democratic Leader James Clyburn (D-SC) saying “[i]t’s not important to me.”

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That’s a wrap.

Transcripts of Five Minutes Five Issues episodes, including links to related information, are at the Ron Paul Institute blog.